


Restless Seas of Inky Mystery

by WandererOfVoid



Series: DanganSplatoon AU that I spent too long on [3]
Category: Dangan Ronpa 3: The End of 希望ヶ峰学園 | The End of Kibougamine Gakuen | End of Hope's Peak High School, Splatoon, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Danganronpa/Splatoon Crossover AU, Gen, Hinata Hajime & Kamukura Izuru Share a Body Simultaneously, Inky!Hajime, Inky!Nagito, Kimura has a few lines here, Let there be (an attempt at) fluff, Octo!Chiaki, Octo!Izuru, and probably some hurt and comfort while I'm at it, and this is why my beta reader refuses to read my stuff now: the fanfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-30
Updated: 2019-10-30
Packaged: 2021-01-13 04:54:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21238508
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WandererOfVoid/pseuds/WandererOfVoid
Summary: The Treat Team won the Splatfest, much to Chiaki and Marina’s joy of winning. However… Hajime was always punctual about returning his shirt on time…But when Nagito and Chiaki returned their shirts, Hajime was nowhere in sight.The days piled into weeks, piled into a month… two months… Hajime wasn’t answering his messages or his phone. Chiaki and Nagito go to his apartment to confront him.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Finally got the time to post the third part of this AU. Yes, Izuru is finally introduced in this part and I know I probably soiled his character and I apologize in advance but I hope you all like my take of his character.  
But I'm not kidding when I say the plot is as twisted as a licorice stick and you'll probably read why. Anyways, I hope you enjoy the third part of the Danganronpa/Splatoon Crossover AU! I am always open to critique in the comments!

Nagito knew something was wrong the very minute he returned his splatfest tee alongside Chiaki. How Hajime wasn’t there, how Hajime wouldn’t respond to his messages, how he wouldn’t return his calls.

How he didn’t go into Grizzco with him. How he… didn’t see them at all.

“...this is the second splatfest in a row that he had missed. Did… something happen after I left?” Nagito asked, recalling that time where Chiaki and Hajime were alone in Skipper Pavilion. The octoling shook her head. “Should we… check his apartment?” Nagito asked. Chiaki hummed. “I think that’s a good idea.”

* * *

“Hajime?” The two knocked on the apartment door and hummed. “No answer?” Chiaki murmured as Nagito began to worry. “Hajime? You home?!”

“Keep it down will ya?!” The next door neighbour yelled out as the white tentacled inkling bent down and got the spare key from under the mat. “I’ve been to Hajime’s place before… he needed something from his apartment and told me where the spare key was placed.” Nagito answered the unspoken question Chiaki posed. The octoling tilted her head in confusion.

Opening the door… revealed an empty area. No couch, no fridge… nothing. His bedroom was clean, no bed to be seen…

“Hajime…”  
“Oi! Ya know the woomy moved out right!?” Nagito turned to see an extremely angry inkling who looked extremely tired. “Look, my best friend is moving here soon. If you don’t haul ya ngyesh out of here, you will be in a whole world of pain!” Nagito and Chiaki dropped the spare key and ran.

* * *

“So he isn’t home… he moved out. And now we have no idea where he went.” Nagito and Chiaki intruded upon a meeting in Octo Canyon about the Octarians next move. Agent 3 seemed unhappy to see the two, however Cuttlefish gave them a concerned look. “It’s been like that since the Trick vs Treat splatfest right?” Callie asked as Marie frowned.

“Did the three of you-”  
“No, no! We were on the same team!” Nagito quickly implied, knowing the Squid Sisters’ experiences with Splatfests. Suddenly, Pearl and Marina showed up with smiles on their faces. “Hello everyone! Did we…” Pearl’s question fell flat when she noticed Nagito and Chiaki’s faces mirroring that of a sad lost puppy.

“What’s… going on?” Marina asked as Agent 3 huffed. “Friend of theirs is missing since the Halloween Splatfest.” The DJ gasped. “W-What!?” Chiaki frowned. Nagito held a phone to Cuttlefish. “This is what he looks like, green eyes with a pointed tentacle on his head-” Agent 3 sprang into action almost immediately after he finished explaining the person.

“You better not be lying!”  
“ ** _Agent 3!_ ** ” Callie and Marie shouted as Cuttlefish gaped. “It couldn’t be… he should’ve…”  
“-died? This better not be a hoax!”  
“Agent 3 please!” Cuttlefish yelled.

Chiaki looked confused. “What? Hajime is… our friend.”  
“They even share the name…” Agent 3 grunted and jumped off of Nagito. “W-What do you mean he… should’ve died…?” The albino inkling asked as Cuttlefish looked down and salvaged a photo from his pocket.

A photo of him… and Hajime. “I will explain everything I can…”

* * *

“During the Great Turf War, I had formed a squad which had consisted of Kyosuke, his girlfriend Chisa, Hajime Hinata and many others. We all knew this day was coming, where DJ Octavio would grow violent against our kind and force a war on us.”

* * *

_ Four inklings of varying ages sat around a campfire, planning on the next ambush. _

“It was a late night, tides were increasingly getting higher and higher. The higher they go, the more vicious Octavio’s assaults were. However… I should’ve known that he would’ve tried something as dirty as this.”

“_ Goodnight everyone! Meeting dismissed!” Craig exclaimed as Chisa giggled, following Kyosuke to his tent. Hajime stood up and glanced towards Craig. “This plan will be fool proof, there is no need to worry Hinata-kun.” _ _ The boy huffed. “I wish I can execute it to the best of my abilities sir!” _ _  
_ _ “Nonsense dear boy, you are just the right shape for war! Now, go get some rest!” Hajime saluted and made his way to his tent. _

_ Craig laid in his bed. _

“...that slimy fiend did the inexcusable ambush.”

_ “SIR! Octarians!” Hajime shouted as Craig readied his bamboozler. “Crab cakes! It’s dark!” Kyosuke shouted. _ _ “G-Guys… ONE OF THEM HAS ME!” The group turned to Hajime and saw a group of octolings holding him at gunpoint as well as holding him restrictively. Their grins glowed in the dark. “Shoot us and this boy is as good as dead!”  
_ _ “H-Help me!” Hajime’s terrified screams echoed the camp as Craig looked at the boy sadly. _

“...I wanted to help him. But I…”

“_ W-Why won’t any of you help me!? I’m…” Hajime was knocked unconscious and dragged away by the Octolings. Kyosuke readied his gun, until Craig forcibly lowered it. “They will still kill him-” _ _  
_ _ “But they’re getting away!” _

“...let him go.”

* * *

Cuttlefish sniffled at the end of his story. “...to this day, I can still hear his screams and cries for help. I failed… as a mentor, as a guardian… I failed.”  
“Gramps…” Marie murmured. Kyosuke grunted. “That’s why I didn’t trust you… I should’ve protected him! But… I was too weak.”  
“Nonsense… Kyosuke, you were strong enough. But those octarians took us by surprise. I’m glad that Hajime is… safe.” Marina looked away. “Actually… there’s more to that… story.”

“Marina?” Pearl mumbled as the DJ shook her head. “I should’ve… told you before. But that Hajime… isn’t who he seems to be.”  
“Huh?” Nagito tilted his head. “...Hajime was… replaced. Both mentally and physically.”  
Pearl huffed. “It’s not like you actually did change him right?”  
“...Pearlie… it was… horrific what we did to him…”

“What did you do to Hajime?” Kyosuke asked as Marina shook her head. “This was an era before I was born… but I read about it.”  
“In Octavio’s library… there is a book called the Turncoat Project. Where it was physically taking an inkling and changing them into an Octoling and vise versa.” Marina started as Chiaki’s jaw dropped. 

“What?”  
“So Hajime… is an octoling?”  
“No.” Nagito muttered bitterly. “That can’t be. It’s impossible… right? Turning inklings into octolings and turning octolings into inklings… that sounds like a sci-fi film plot point!”

Kyosuke frowned. “...continue, Marina.” The octoling DJ let out a quiet yet shaky sigh.

“The book went as follows…”

* * *

_ The test subject was one of the very best inkling soldiers in the Great Turf War. Captured from Craig Cuttlefish’s unit, this boy is going to be our perfect specimen. _

_ Our perfect Turncoat soldier. _

_ His screams echoed the laboratory hallways, begging for freedom and cursing out Octavio’s twisted experiments. We were out of ideas… but it’s what we needed to do to win this war. We tore him open, inside out and made him squirm against all torture devices. _

_ Until… he stopped screaming for help, the hope from his eyes dwindling by each hour that passed in that crammed cell of his. It was beautiful, his tentacles were coming through nicely… _

_ The next time I heard him scream was from the final stages. Burning every inch of his inkling ink from his tentacles before putting in our own special ink. Ink that never changes colour unless the user wills it. _

_ Long black tentacles, a permanent detachment to his emotions. Yes… he was perfect. His red eyes glistened like rubies in the heat of summer. Glistened like the ink of a newly bred Salmonid horde. _

_ His christened name… Kamukura Izuru. _

* * *

  
Chiaki hiccupped and covered her mouth in shock. “Agent 8?”  
“ _ That… that thing…! That guy…! _ ”  
“Chiaki?” Nagito held onto her shoulder as the octoling began crying uncontrollably. “ _ No way… there’s just… no… no please… _ ”  
“She’s… remembering.” Kyosuke murmured as Marina started crying too. “...I met him before. He introduced me to Chiaki… a horrible, vicious octarian that they created from his hatred for the world that abandoned him.”

Cuttlefish looked down and away. “...I should’ve done something.”  
“Where can we find him?” Nagito stated firmly. Callie looked shocked. “Agent 4, you can’t be serious about-”

“Hajime was my friend too!” The group were shocked at his outburst. “I don’t… want anymore people to suffer at the hands of Izuru Kamukura. I don’t want Hajime to suffer alone! Tell me, where can I find him?!”  
“Nagito…” Chiaki whispered. Kyosuke huffed. “...I have to commend your bravery. But now knowing the circumstance behind Hajime, it’s unlikely we would bring him bac-”  
“Unlikely?” Nagito grunted, his eyes narrowing. “...I’m a friend to him. If anyone were to bring him back, it would be me.”

Marina hummed. “Okay… I feel he might be in Octo Valley.”  
“Indeed, Octarian activity there has spiked since I last patrolled there a month ago.” Nagito equipped his Hero Dualies and stood up. “We will support you all the way, Agent 4.”

The albino inkling nodded his head towards the group and took the grate back to Inkopolis Square. (_ The grate to Octo Valley should be in the plaza. _ ) He hurried to a bus stop and turned to face the square. ( _ Chiaki… I promise. _ ) Her teary eyes filled his vision. ( _ I promise… to bring back Hajime. _ ) Hajime’s smiling face flashed before him. ( _ There is just no way… you could be that sinister… _)

“_ Red eyes, long black tentacles… _ ” He mumbled inaudibly before shaking his head. “That doesn’t sound like you at all…”  
“Of course it doesn’t kid! Are ya going to stand there all day, hop on already!” Nagito blinked to see the very annoyed bus driver in front of him.


	2. Hide and Seek

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nagito goes to Octo Valley to find Hajime before Izuru appears. AKA, attempts were made in this chapter and most of it is fluff communication after the excitement.

Nagito rode his way to Inkopolis Plaza, noting how barren the place seemed without all the inklings making idle chatter about Turf Wars or Ranked Battle modes. Instead, it was quaint and quiet.  The old studio the Squid Sisters once hosted the news was curtained off for Marie’s Late Night Hour show. The old grate beside the cafe below was all he came for. He squidformed and slipped through the grate-

-only to be stopped short by a metal barrier. ( _ Someone… blocked it off? _ ) He reverted back to his kid form and hummed. It seemed odd…

He turned on his hero headset. “Uh… I can’t access Octo Valley from Inkopolis Plaza. The grate’s been sealed.”   
“ _ Agent 3, did you do that? _ ” Cuttlefish responded as the other agent sighed. “ _ There should be a button beside the grate for you to press. _ ”

Nagito turned to his left, indeed there was a button there. He pressed it and the hatch below him made a quietly hissing noise. He sighed in relief, but before he could thank the captain, he suddenly dropped down into the pipes.  He reverted to his squid form out of fear as his tentacles flapped wildly in a panicked fashion.

Nagito flung from the grate and faceplanted the dirt below him. He picked himself up and groaned. “Ow… maybe a word of warning next time…?” He mumbled as he looked around.  Empty and broken kettles littered the place, the entrances sealed off to prevent any evil octarians from rising out of the underground.  ( _ Hajime… I saved our friendship once, I can do it again! _ ) He readied his dualies and slowly trudged through the broken wasteland.

“ _ Agent 4! STOP! _ ” Marina’s voice shouted as Nagito gasped.

A blast of purple ink shot his way. The white tentacled inkling was lucky to have avoided that. “ _ We picked up a lifeform around your space! _ ”   
“ _ Could it be…? _ ”  Nagito glanced around from where he landed, behind a brick wall. The higher ground seemed like a viable place for whoever it was that was targeting him.

- _ SLING! _ -

Another shot that just grazed Nagito’s cheek. He hissed at the burn mark the ink patch left. “ _ Are you okay Nagito? _ ” Chiaki asked nervously over the communication as the boy nodded. “Y-Yeah… I’ll be fine.”  Nagito scoped the area. Nothing… despite it being so quiet before.

- _ Whewwwwww _ -

Nagito gulped and immediately jumped from his hiding place. ( _ A-A killer wail!? _ ) He glanced towards the direction of the killer wail and stopped, dead.

Long black tentacles… Neo Octoling armor and old fashioned goggles obscuring the upper half of their face. They moved the tentacles aside and immediately took aim at Nagito. The boy ducked to avoid another shot.  ( _ T-This guy… they’re fast! _ ) Nagito skid to a halt at the edge of the cliff. Only then did the octarian jump down to his level and aimed the gun at him. Nagito dropped his weapons and held his hands up.

“...you shouldn’t be here, inkling.” The bored tone of the octarian behind him meant only one thing. That it was a guy that was talking, talking in fluent inkling and that he also meant business.

“I’m looking for a friend.” Nagito uttered.   
“There are no octarians here, nor are there inklings… retreat now or surrender your life to me.” The octoling grunted. “I promise to leave you alone! I just want to find my-” Nagito felt the barrel of the gun knock him roughly at the back of the head.  “Last chance inkling. Surrender or die.” The tone of voice… it sounded familiar. He sounded bored with the whole exchange and just wanted it to end already. Nagito sighed and raised his leg and kicked.

Kicked the octarian in the side of the shin, dropping the weapon and losing his balance. Nagito picked up his weapons as the octoling stood up and dusted himself off. “I find it boring that you have the need to fight back… generic and boring.”

The octoling braced a different weapon, a roller. Nagito narrowed his eyes as the octoling came towards him at unnatural speeds. Nagito was shoved aside with a loud yelp upon landing against a glass wall.

He didn’t have time to react when the octarian picked him up by the throat and tossed him off the edge of the cliff. Nagito’s world soon faced to black before he saw the octoling jump down with him. 

* * *

  
Nagito didn’t know it was possible to wake up from death, he didn’t know if it was possible for him to wake up at all. His hands felt stainless steel below him as he opened his eyes. He raised his head and saw… him, standing across from him.  Long black tentacles wiggling impatiently. “...that area did not suit our battle. One of us will leave alive here and it’s not going to be you, Agent 4 of the New Squidbeak Splatoon.”

The purple glow of his goggles boared holes in Nagito’s self-esteem. ( _ I may have saved Inkopolis before… but… this guy he’s like… _ ) The octoling scoffed and prepped his roller. ( _ ...on a whole new level. _ )  
“Stand, and fight for your life.” Nagito swiftly stood up and readied his weapons. The octoling came at him faster than before. It didn’t give time for Nagito to observe the surroundings.

He knew that they were on an abandoned boss rink, but the area seemed so dark and isolated. No colourful light or scenery. A dull grey above a dull grey. Fitting… to someone who seemed disinterested in everything.

The octoling was coming for another smack -but Nagito countered with a burst bomb and using the butt of his dualies to knock him in the head. He kicked the octoling back against the ground as the roller shattered into pieces.  Nagito stared at the octoling as he slowly got up and shook his head. The goggles were damaged but not completely broken. The octoling charged at him with an N-ZAP ‘89 and shot at Nagito repeatedly.

He was quick enough to dodge a few shots with his rolls, until he ran out of ink. Nagito dissipated into the ink and swam in his small ink trails. “Running? How predictable…” The octoling muttered as Nagito glanced towards him and stopped.

- _ Dingding! _ -

Nagito narrowed dodged an inkstrike and gasped out in pain. ( _ My body is… _ )   
“Your exhaustion will get the better of you. It would have been an easier route if you just forgot this place and forgot about your friend.”  
( _ Forget… Hajime? _ ) Nagito felt the octoling’s boot on his back. He recalled back to his first day in Inkopolis Square, meeting Hajime, going into Turf War, eating Crusty Sean’s sandwiches, saving Inkopolis for his sake… everything.

Everything he did… was for his friendship with Hajime. Nagito grunted and furiously flipped and got on top of the octoling. He furiously bashed the octoling against the metal and threw him across the arena.

“I’m not forgetting my friend! I’m not forgetting the promise I made him! I promised him that I would be the best teammate he ever had…!” Nagito glared at the octoling furiously. “I’m not going to idle by while someone tells me to forget someone as special as Hajime is to me!”  The octoling took longer to stand up. A crackling sound radiated from his direction as the octoling tossed aside his goggles and stepped on them. “If that is what you want…” Nagito froze as the octoling looked at him.

_ Red eyes, black tentacles… he was… Izuru Kamukura. _

“...so be it.” The octoling dashed towards him with an octo brush as Nagito stared at him in shock. ( _ The same face as… _ ) “Hajime…?” Izuru continued his charge and smacked Nagito repeatedly before sending him across the arena.

( _ How could I have been so blind? How…? Six tentacles… one that’s more prominent on his head as it sticks up slightly! _ ) Nagito stood up and grabbed his dualies, only to be stopped when he was tackled to the ground by Izuru.  His long tentacles grabbing his ankles and wrists. “...pathetic…” He muttered. Nagito looked at Izuru in the eyes… those ruby red eyes that were once green and pure.  _ A smile where the flat line of his lip was… his teeth whenever he smiled and talked… _

“...Hajime… I promised to save you-”   
“I am not Hajime Hinata.”   
“You are! I’m going to prove it as well!” Izuru lowered his face towards Nagito’s own, to the point that the inkling could feel the breath on his neck. “I have no memory of my past self. Nor do I want them to return. I learned that Inklings and Octolings alike are both species in need of wiping out. Fighting over such arbitrary things such as fashion and genetic faults.”

Nagito squirmed as Izuru’s tentacles tightened. “There is no such thing as equality to all species. We will forever be shunned if we had an infliction or birth defect.”   
“T-That’s not true!” Nagito choked out. “Enlighten me.”   
“K-Kamukura… I don’t h-hate you for the way you look. Neither did I hate Chiaki when I f-first found her…! I didn’t hate you, I didn’t hate Hajime… I just want… all the fighting to stop.” Izuru’s eyes gave nothing away. Dull ruby eyes boared into him.

“...I just want my friend back. The friend I risked… everything for.” Nagito smiled weakly and closed his eyes. “Tell him I’m… sorry… I didn’t tell him…”

- _ dripdrop _ -

- _ splat! _ -

Nagito opened his eyes nervously, the tightening grip on his ankles and wrists stopped. The octoling above him was…  _ crying.  _ A ruby gaze drowned in salty tears leaking from his eyes. Despite the tears… his face remained stoic. Unmoved from his emotional bout. “Kamukura…? Why aren’t you-”

“Leave.” Izuru stated, getting off of him. His tentacles unwined themselves from Nagito. “N-No…! I want you to-”   
“Leave, Agent 4.”    
“I’m not leaving you again! Nor am I going to let you leave me!”

Izuru blinked, more tears unnoticed from the owner falling from his cheeks. “Don’t you see Kamukura? You’re in pain…! You may not feel it… but I can see it!” Nagito sniffed. “...I understand your pain… being alone, feeling like there’s no one left to help you. But… you have me! You have me, you have Chiaki… we can talk!”

“...Chiaki is afraid of my existence.”   
“Because you were brainwashed-”   
“Because I was created this way.” Nagito frowned. “I’m not afraid of you! Why? Should I be?”

Izuru remained silent. “...you shouldn’t affiliate with someone like me.” That sentence boiled over Nagito’s emotions. His fists trembled as he ran towards Izuru and-

-encased him with a hug.

“Agent 4-”   
“-stop… stop please. I want to be your friend unconditionally. I want to continue being Hajime’s friend… so please… let me be your friend!”  Izuru’s tears stained Nagito’s shoulder as his tentacles wrapped themselves around Nagito unconsciously.

* * *

_ “Please let me go!” _ __   
_ “I can bet that my squad can get me!” _ __   
_ “Soon I’ll leave!” _ _   
_ __ “Soon! I’ll be free!”

** _“Set the inkling on the table and let the experiment commence!”_ **

* * *

“Kamukura…?” The octoling remained motionless, tears forever falling from his face.

* * *

_ Kimura emerged to the surface with a passenger behind her. “I-If Octavio finds us… o-or if the Squidbeak Splatoon did… w-w-we’ll be takoyaki!” _

_ “Stow your fears, it’s boring. You have the formula to revert me to my supposed inkling self?” _ _   
_ _ “Y-Yes! B-But… it’s a prototype! Don’t get too involved with people okay? Emotional lows can cause you to change back! _ ”

* * *

Nagito sat the octoling against the fence of the arena, his tentacles wiggled. ( _ I hope he’s… okay. _ )

* * *

_ “No… why can’t she…? No…! No!” Hajime smashed his mirror as his tentacles grew out. “A-Already!? K-Kimura…! I should’ve…” _

_ Packing his stuff, he immediately turned to the bag of kusamochi he received from Nagito. He picked it up…  _ _and tossed it into the trash._

_ Hajime, realising what he just did, gasped out and choked up on his tears. “I-It’s… too late…! Nagito…! Chiaki…! I-I’m… sorry… _ ”

* * *

Nagito sat beside the motionless Izuru and waited for the other Agents to pick them up. The octoling was still crying, even unconscious he was sobbing quietly. “... _ sorry… _ ” The ghost of Hajime’s voice whispered from Izuru’s lips as more tears slipped from his eyes.  Nagito turned to him and cupped Izuru’s chin. “...I’m sorry too. I should’ve been a… better friend.”

Nagito was assigned to carry Izuru onto the helicopter while the group remained silent, in fears of waking up the crying octoling from his terrible nightmare. Arriving back at Cuttlefish Cabin, Kyosuke had stayed while Chiaki went off with Marina and Pearl.  “So those Octarians… did that to poor Hinata-kun.” Cuttlefish mumbled, glancing at his former comrade’s sleeping form. Kyosuke looked down. “...I should leave, my wife… would want to know about this-”

“Don’t tell her. She’s already under a lot of stress currently.” Cuttlefish stated, putting a hand on Kyosuke’s shoulder. “I will inform you of his condition.” The agent sadly nodded and jumped into the grate.

Cuttlefish turned to Nagito. “You should go home too kiddo-”   
“No… I’m going to watch him. He did that with me… so… I feel it’s right to return the favour.” Cuttlefish didn’t argue with him as he hurried to where his granddaughters were waiting before they disappeared into the grates.

Nagito took off his Hero suit and put on his casual coat, sitting next to Izuru’s futon.

* * *

  
Izuru awoke late in the evening, confused but somewhat aware. His tears dried up as he glanced towards a resting Nagito who slept upright next to him. “Agent 4…” He whispered quietly as he quietly moved the agent into the futon with him.

( _ Warm… _ ) He buried his head into Nagito’s back, slowly humming the Calamari Inkantation as he lulled back to sleep.

* * *

  
Nagito awoke the next morning, wrapped firmly in a warm futon. ( _ But I don’t… _ ) His thoughts were interrupted by a low tune behind him. “Kamu-” The inkling stopped. He turned to see… Hajime, humming along to the familiar tune of the Calamari Inkantation.

( _ Is that how he… turns back? _ ) Nagito noticed that the inkling was still wearing his neo octoling armor, he frowned. ( _ ...I hope he remembers what happened… _ )

He glanced down to see… Hajime’s arms wrapped around his chest. The inkling felt his white tentacles wiggle aggressively as his face blossomed a bright red. The closeness… the touches…  _ the contact. _

Nagito tried to ease himself into the futon and fall back to sleep, however… Hajime stopped humming and grumbled sleepily. He yawned and opened his eyes…

Face to face with Nagito.

Hajime blinked and turned red. “N-Nagito!?”   
“A-Ah! Good morning Haji-!” The boy scampered away from him, only to stop and look down at his armor. “O-Oh no…"  
“Hajime? It’s okay! You’re-”   
“N-Nagito…” The boy stumbled against the wall as the albino inkling looked down. “Hajime… I know that you’re an octoling… but so is Chiaki! Plus… you’re not so bad.”

The fear from Hajime slowly simmered. “B-But…” Nagito shook his head. “I also know that you weren’t an octoling before. That you were… converted into one so many years ago.”  The inkling glanced down at his armor, guilt laced his expression. “...you still trust me after knowing all of that?”   
“Of course I do!” Nagito grabbed Hajime’s hands with the broadest of grins across his face.

“I don’t see race! You have been my first friend since I arrived in Inkopolis, the same Hajime from that day I met you here!” Hajime blinked in surprise as Nagito’s grin lowered into a friendly smile.  “Agent 4? Is he awake?” Nagito twitched as Hajime tilted his head. “Agent… 4?” He murmured curiously.

Nagito sighed. He had a lot of explaining to do.

* * *

  
Cuttlefish, Callie and Marie sat around a kotatsu with Nagito and Hajime. “These old misty eyes of mine must be deceiving me… Hinata-kun, is that really you? After all these years…?” Hajime winced and squinted towards Cuttlefish, before a look of realization dawned on him. “Craig? Craig Cuttlefish?” He whispered in an almost mesmerised tone.  
“...you remember me huh? After all that happened back then… it’s good to see you haven’t aged a day.”   
“And look at you, still wielding that bamboozler…” Cuttlefish laughed quietly as Marie cleared her throat. “Can we ask about… Kamukura Izuru?”

Hajime tensed as Nagito frowned. “We shouldn’t ask him-”   
“No… it’s fine, Nagito.” The inkling whispered. “I’ve lied about who I was for two years now. I think… I should tell you all everything. Being the… Squidbeak Splatoon I heard so much about when I was…  _ him. _ ”  
“So you two are like, two sides of a coin?” Callie asked as the inkling nodded. “Different personalities, however… the body is the most tampered with.”   
“What… did they do to you? To change you from an inkling to an octoling?” Marie asked.

Hajime closed his eyes. “...it’s vague, but I only remember it faintly. Because my memories are foggy from the Great Turf War, I can only assume that they messed with my head and… created him-”   
“-as a product of your hatred and betrayal…” Cuttlefish finished with a sad grimace. Hajime smiled weakly. “I was… naive back then. Stupid and… reckless. I held the grudges of your squad, the octarians… for so long that I… that I…”

He trembled as the old man frowned. “...don’t blame yourself for your actions. The war was… an emotional time for everyone involved. I still feel the regret from that ambush… how worthless we were when you were held captive.”  Hajime looked down. “...that I let them use it against me.”  
“It still doesn’t answer the question. How did they… change you?” Hajime opened his mouth to answer, only for him to choke. “K-Kamu-” His tentacles grew out and the brownish colour of his ink was replaced with black, tipped with green.

Marie readied her sniper under the table, only for Callie to put her hand on her cousin’s shoulder. “Marie, no.” She whispered.  
Izuru exhaled and mumbled an apology. “Hinata doesn’t know the procedure, however, I do. As I’ve done it to myself a few times to keep my inkling self stable.”   
“You…!” Callie grunted as the long tentacled octoling hummed curiously. 

“...the first procedure involved the dissection of inkling ink, chopping off a piece of the patient’s tentacle and dunking it in octarian ink. Apply some anti-growth serum to the tentacle to prevent regrowth to later attach the severed tentacle. The second procedure was the conditioning. Removing every trace of inkling ink from the inkling until dry. Final procedure… dunk into batch of octarian ink and drop the tentacle in.”

The group stared at him, Nagito was horrified. “W-Wait… did you have to do the same to bring back-”   
“One of our Octarian pharmacists ran away that day and helped me. Knowing how dangerous I was if alone on the surface. Thus… Hajime was recreated from here…” Izuru pinched his long ahoge-like tentacle, that seemed to squirm uncontrollably for a few seconds upon contact.  “And when you mean that day… you mean that duel with DJ Octavio and Agent 3?” Izuru nodded towards Cuttlefish. “Correct. Hajime had resurfaced that day.” The old man seemed to smile lightly.

“The inkantation… you remembered it. How it’s engraved-”   
“-into the very DNA of an inkling’s soul.” Izuru finished as Cuttlefish nodded. The octoling sighed as his tentacles retracted into his head, the black circles around his eyes joined together as his ink colour turned a pale green colour, his ahoge tentacle shrunk as he breathed in.

“Hajime?” Nagito called, throwing caution into the wind. “...Nagito?” The boy blinked, his olive green eyes returning the mossy green of Nagito’s eyes. “I take it that… Kamukura explained everything?”  Cuttlefish nodded. “This poor old fool should’ve helped you from that incident…” Hajime looked down and shook his head. “Don’t blame yourself Cap’n. I shouldn’t have gotten so reckless during that attack… and I’m sorry to make you worry.”

The old man sniffled and rubbed his eye. “It’s okay… I’m just thankful to the Great Zapfish that you’re alive and okay.” Nagito smiled and hugged Hajime tightly, causing the boy to stiffen. “I’m so glad you’re okay too…”

The ahoged inkling smiled gently as Nagito let him go. “What about… Agent 8?”   
“I suggest you give her time…” Callie mumbled. “She looked pretty horrified about Kamukura being Hinata-”   
“-In the meantime, how about you and Hinata spend some time together to recover amends?” Marie asked as the albino inkling hummed.

“...Hajime?” The aforementioned boy hummed in response. “I think that’s a good idea. However I sold my apartment so I have nowhere to stay…”   
“You can stay with me! There’s a guest room that I hardly use.” Nagito grinned as Hajime blinked. “Oh… thanks, Nagito.”

* * *

  
Nagito unlocked his apartment door as Hajime, dressed in a green coat, wheeled his suitcases behind him. The albino looked confused. “Why do you have two suitcases?”    
“Oh! Uh… Kamukura’s stuff is packed in this one.”   
“Wait… Kamukura has things?” Nagito asked as Hajime looked down. “Yeah… he does.”  Noting the somber tone, the albino ended the conversation there. He opened the door and allowed Hajime inside. “You know… your place is nice. I’ve… never been to your house before -aside from that one day where you passed out.”

Nagito laughed nervously. “Yeah… sorry about that.” Hajime entered the apartment and approached the guest bedroom. The albino opened the door and followed Hajime into the room.  The boy placed his two suitcases on the bed and sat on the mattress. “Thank you for giving me a place to stay Nagito.”   
“That’s what friends are for!” The albino laughed as Hajime smiled in response. “Oh! Right… your coat.” 

Nagito shook his hands. “No, no! It’s fine, you can keep it.”   
“This is already so much. I don’t want to take your coat. Plus… you can’t get this coat again from the shops.” The albino was about to respond until his green coat was tossed to him.

Hajime winced, staring at his armor in disgust. “I’ll… get this off…” Nagito turned pink as his tentacles wiggled. The ahoged inkling started to unzip the top and remove the belts.  The albino let out a garbled squeal and covered his eyes. “I-I’ll leave now!” The boy hurried out of the room and slammed the door in his panic. He heard Hajime’s confused hum on the other side as the boy covered his mouth.

( _ Stop it Nagito! Get ahold of yourself! _ ) The inkling smacked his cheeks and shook his head. “I-I’ll… order take out for dinner! Do you… want anything?”  
“ _ Hm… I’m not fussed! I haven’t eaten in a while… _ ” Hajime’s reply came as Nagito nodded. “Right!” The albino tapped on his phone and dialed the takeout number.

* * *

  
The inkling had fell asleep on the couch, waiting for his and Hajime’s food to arrive. Nagito woke up with a start, hearing a scuffle in the kitchen. “H-Hajime!?” The albino squeaked as he reared his head to the kitchen, his mouth froze mid-exclamation.  Izuru, dressed in a grey anchor sweat and white snow boots, was reheating the takeout from earlier. His long black tentacles swayed lazily behind him. Nagito slowly stood up and approached the octarian.

“...good evening Agent 4.” Izuru greeted as Nagito choked. “U-Uh… out of Octo Valley and Octo Canyon, I’m called Nagito Komaeda.”

“...Nagito.” Izuru repeated quietly as he turned to the albino, holding a small lunchbox. “You fell asleep, so Hinata had to answer the door.”

“So… why isn’t-”   
“Hinata grew emotional once again, causing me to take over for the evening.” Nagito gingerly took the box from the octarian’s grip and slowly sipped at his noodles. His eyes widened. “Did you… do anything to the food?”

Izuru tilted his head to the side. “...the flavours were bland. I added some flavour to it. Salmon soy and bean soy are mostly salty and I balanced it with some… ‘spring onion’.” Nagito hummed with content. “...it’s good.”  The ahoge tentacle wiggled in response as the owner nodded towards Nagito before picking up his own meal. The albino lead the boy to the lounge to continue eating while watching a mediocre drama on TV.

Nagito watched Izuru eat his meal with mild intrigue. The octarian picked up on his stare, staring back as the albino looked away and blushed, beginning to eating at a hastened pace. The melodramatic drama’s ambience filled the room as Izuru put down his empty cup with a prayer’s clap and a nod.  “So you are allowing Hinata and me to stay in your abode, correct?” Izuru asked as Nagito snapped from his musings. “U-Um… yes I am! Since you… kinda put up your old apartment for sale after the Trick versus Treat splatfest.”

Izuru looked at the TV, his red eyes dull and uninterested. “...Chiaki was afraid of seeing me again.”   
“H-Huh?”   
“Hinata and I share knowledge, sometimes memories but not normally. When I resurfaced that night, I sought to see her again… but his feelings held him back and carried me back to Octo Valley. In which I had resided and guarded from inklings that accidently intruded upon the area.”

“So… Agent 3 wasn’t the one that blocked the grates?”   
“I knew of the mechanism… I used it once. I never thought I would see an inkling emerge from those grates… I never had thought Hinata would befriend an inkling.” Nagito turned pink as he looked out to the nightly Inkopolis cityscape.

Izuru loomed over his shoulder. Nagito turned to him and froze up. The octoling was staring at his half-empty cup of noodles. “...are you going to finish that?”   
“A-Ah… no… feel free to have it…!” Izuru hummed, staring at him directly before taking the cup and eating the remainder of the food in it.

“...thank you, Ag- Nagito.” The octarian stood up and took the cups and put them in the garbage bin. Nagito stood up as Izuru made his way to the guest room, the albino stopped him. “You know… you don’t have to go to bed yet.”  
“I suggest this is the proper time to go to bed. Goodnight, Nagito.” The octarian seamlessly removed himself from Nagito’s grasp and enter the guestroom with a soft click. The albino blinked as he looked over to the television.

It was a talk show about Marina and Pearl’s new song, Into the Light. Nagito smiled gently and took a seat on the lounge again, listening attentively to the program. ( _ A song about closing the gaps between Octolings and Inklings… how they should be united in Inkopolis City, a place for freedom and expression… _ )  Nagito glanced towards the guest room door and hummed quietly. ( _ ...if only Kamukura saw that. But I know… it must be hard to set him free of his traditional ways… but maybe. I can try… _ )

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Izuru is emotionally troubled and conflicted after the re-emergence of his other self. After all, his time in Octarian Military made him so spiteful so much that it became the only thing he felt aside from boredom and nothing.
> 
> Oh and if you're curious on what Izuru's weapon was, it was something he whipped up in the barracks of the war, using battle records from soldiers who fought in the war. It's durable to a certain extent or when he decides to switch up his tactic out of sheer boredom. Like a Turf War Multi-tool of sorts.


	3. Mending Shattered Bonds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuru is learning how to be what is considered to be normal from Nagito. Truths are revealed about Izuru which makes the plot more and more convoluted than need be.

Nagito grew concerned about the absence of Hajime in the living room the next morning. The albino went to the guest room and knocked on the door gently.   
“Hajime?” He called quietly. He received no response. Humming quietly, he opened the door slowly and steadily. He heard the piano chimes of a slowed down redux of the Calamari Inkantation as soon as it was fully opened. In the bed, laid a disheveled inkling Hajime. Snoring loudly and drooling on his grey sweat Izuru wore the night before.

The source of the music came from a lone laptop on the bland desk beside the bed. Nagito was intrigued. ( _ So Kamukura  _ _ did _ _ have things… _ ) The albino slowly approached the laptop and swiped his finger across the touchpad.  Upon doing that, a desktop appeared… all in the Octarian language. However, a notable music application was open and it seemed to be the source of the music Hajime was listening to. ( _ Did he compose this as a way to revert himself back to Hajime? _ )

The computer fell into sleep mode again as Hajime stirred from his sleep. “Mhm… Nagito…?”   
“A-Ah! Good morning Hajime!” The inkling sat up and rubbed the tiredness from his eyes. He suddenly noted the albino’s appearance to be close to Izuru’s computer.  
“Nagito…! What are you doing with  _ his _ laptop?”   
“Nothing! I swear… I was curious on the music playing through it.” Hajime sighed in relief? “That laptop has some… things on it.” The boy blushed and quickly closed it.

Nagito gasped quietly at the loud noise as Hajime dragged him out of the guestroom. “S-So uh… what do you want to do today?”   
“Hm…” Nagito glanced down at his phone and sighed. “Chiaki hasn’t been talking to me lately… not after the whole Kamukura scenario. She… did see you when you were still him and she… well, ran away with Marina and Pearl in tow.”

Hajime looked down, rubbing his arm in a guilty manner. “B-But hey! Grizzco is currently hiring again! Do you want to do that with me again? Like the old times?” Nagito asked with a smile. Hajime nodded shyly. “Alright… sounds good.”

* * *

  
The first few shifts with Grizzco have been a typical pain in the butt for Nagito and Hajime. Until they were unexpectedly paired up with…

“Oh! Hey! It’s you guys again!” Nagito turned to see a familiar brown-tentacled inkling in a green hoodie. “Ah! Makoto! I take it you’re here to do some shifts huh?”   
“Ah… not alone. I found that octoling girl you were with during the Splatfest we met!” Hajime tensed when Chiaki entered the matchup room.  The two shared eye contact briefly, only for the girl to quiver away behind Makoto. Nagito smiled. “It’s good to see you again Chiaki! Hajime and I, we were so worried about you…”

- _ Dingding!- _

The four reared their heads to see the boat they must travel on to reach the Smokeyard. Makoto smiled. “Best of luck out there!” 

* * *

  
The first two waves were nothing compared to the final wave. Where Mr. Grizz had asked them to fulfill the quota of twenty gold eggs in a boss rush high tide. Steel Eels crawled along the two faux islands as Nagito assisted Makoto on the other island with bosses. 

Hajime and Chiaki where watching each others back until she was cornered. The octoling huddled into the corner as four Maws made their way towards her. Hajime felt the world slow down as the girl sent him an emotionless look. 

_ “You’re a failure. Nothing will redeem your losses, especially your filthy tears.” _ _   
_ _ “Nanami, how many times do I have to tell you that inklings will kill you on the spot just for your tentacles and eye shape. Believe me, they are traitorous monsters.” _

It all happened so quickly. Chiaki braced for her doom until a Sting Ray saved her life. On that end of the Sting Ray was her former mentor, Izuru Kamukura.   
“Nanami, carry the eggs to the basket, I will hold down these Salmonids.” The octoling stared at him in shock as Izuru used his given dualies to wreak havoc on the hordes of Salmonids. 

Fifty out of twenty was achieved because of Izuru. Makoto superjumped back to the boat as Nagito watched Chiaki and Izuru stare at each other.

“W-Why did you save me?”   
“You needed help. I granted that to you.”   
“But still! You didn’t…” Chiaki shook her head and superjumped to the boat. Izuru, in the spur of the moment thinking, reached out to her with a shocked expression.

It faded into his emotionless glance as Nagito approached him.

* * *

  
It had been days since the two saw Chiaki and been days since Hajime had resurfaced in Izuru. The octoling spent most of his time cooped up in ‘his bedroom’. Nagito knew it had something to do with Chiaki. ( _ Maybe he was trying to… reconnect with Chiaki? But… _ ) He opened the bedroom door and saw Izuru was typing on his computer. His face hidden from view. “...Kamukura?”   
“...do you need something Nagito?”

The distant robotic tone spooked the albino. “Can you… tell me what’s wrong? You’ve been like this since… you know-”   
“It does not concern you-”   
“-it does concern me…!” Nagito exclaimed as Izuru tilted his head towards him. “Chiaki’s my friend, Hajime and you are too! Please just… tell me what’s wrong?”

The octoling said nothing, continuing to click away at his computer. “...Kamukura…?”

“...leave. Nagito.”   
“No! I promised that I would be a good friend to you… but I can’t be good friends with you if I can’t understand you!” Nagito shouted, his emotions boiling over. Izuru stopped typing as the albino hiccupped. 

“I didn’t ask for any of this you know? Becoming an agent of the Squidbeak Splatoon, becoming friends with Chiaki and you and so many people! But you know, I don’t complain about it. I roll with it. I roll with it until it starts feeling… normal.” Nagito cried, slamming his hand on his chest. “But ever since you vanished with Hajime, it’s just been… going in a downhill spiral and I don’t know what to do with you anymore!”

Nagito lifted his head, sobbing hysterically. “So please… just… just open up to me…”  Izuru turned his head towards the albino… only then did he see it. Tears… falling from Izuru’s eyes. Only then… did Nagito truly grasp the situation. ( _ He… doesn’t know what to feel? _ )

* * *

  
The two had moved out into the lounge room, Izuru held his laptop on his lap. Nagito sat next to him as the octarian rested his elbow on the laptop, his hand clutching his head.  Nagito wasn’t the greatest at picking up expression. How the octarian seemed to chew his lip uncharacteristically and his red eyes would dart across the darkened screen before him. The inkling hummed quietly. 

“...do you want to talk about it now? I saw you crying… are you… upset?” Izuru glanced towards him, his eyes blinking slowly. “...what is that?”   
“Huh? Being upset?”  The octoling nodded slowly as the inkling suddenly grasped the situation. “You… don’t feel normally, do you?”   
“During the transformation Hinata had to endure, my emotions were sealed. All of my hobbies, memories of my past, were all erased. For Hinata to resurface, he has undone some of the process…”

Nagito sat, confused. ( _ Should I… comfort him? _ )

“Well… being upset is like your… chest is closing up and your mind is overwhelmed with the repeating events cycling through your head…”   
“Ah… I see… so I must be ‘upset’.” Izuru phrased the word slowly, as if it were foreign for him to say.

Nagito hummed slowly. “Is this… about Chiaki?” The octoling winced at the name as the inkling stiffened. Izuru mumbled out something incoherent. “Um… repeat that?”   
“Oh… apologies, my tone must have slipped… I said that… I thought that Nanami would forgive me for my past actions…”

The octoling looked down at his laptop. “...but I theorize that my presence is traumatic to her. Even to this day…” Nagito looked to his side, a small grimace lacing his face.  “Is it okay to ask… what you did to Chiaki?” The inkling asked as Izuru swiped on his touchpad to awaken the computer from sleep mode.  
“I was vengeful during my time in Octavio’s forces. I did… things that no soldier had the inksac to do.” He placed the laptop gently on Nagito’s coffee table, there it played a video.

* * *

_ “N-No please I-” _ __   
_ “This behaviour will get you killed on the battlefield…!” _ __   
_ “B-But I-”  _ _ Izuru slammed Chiaki against the concrete wall. “Give me a reason why I shouldn’t dunk you into the ocean for your repeated incompetence.” _ _   
_ __ “I promise… I-I promise I won’t-”

_ Izuru grunted, leaving her crippled against the ground. _

* * *

  
Nagito glanced towards Izuru in shock, his face unreadable. “You…”    
“...I was still susceptible to Hinata’s emotions. Anger influenced my actions during my time serving under Octavio. I wonder…”  Izuru stared at the blank screen. “...if there is a way for me to atone for my actions.” The albino nodded his head, his tentacles bouncing with the movement. “I’m certain that you and Hajime can co-exist and atone for everything! But sitting in a dark room in front of your laptop isn’t going to help with that!”

Nagito grasped the octoling’s hands and forced him to look at the inkling. “You aren’t alone Kamukura! I can help you,  _ we _ can help you!”   
“...do you promise…?”   
“Yes!” Nagito exclaimed as Izuru closed his eyes and nodded.

* * *

  
It was surprising to see Hajime walk out of that guestroom the next morning, eager to go out and play Turf Wars. Nagito had liked this side of his friend, an inkling that was eager to play with soon to be friends.  The rotations were Arowana Mall and Ancho-V Games. Nagito stood in front of the battle tower while Hajime went shopping for some new gear. ( _ It’s odd… maybe Kamukura has something to do with his mood…? _ )

Hajime came back with a pristine white button up shirt and white sneakers, almost similar to the outfit he wore when they first met -only his tie was missing. “Are you ready Hajime?” Nagito asked as the inkling smiled, nodding towards him.

* * *

  
They suffered losses and celebrated victories. Nagito wore the biggest grin on his face, it was as though Hajime never left. The day seemed to end anti-climatically, the albino and the inkling grabbed a bite to eat. “That was… one good day.” Nagito stated with a smile. Hajime sipped at his drink. “...thank you Nagito.”   
“Huh?”   
“I heard from Kamukura that you are willing to give us a chance… to help us…” The albino inkling noticed the slight dip in Hajime’s tone. “Are you… not happy about me wanting to help-”  
“No, no!” Hajime shook his hands in defense. “It’s just… so hard to believe that you’re so… easily trusting of me and…  _ him. _ ” Nagito blinked, his tentacles wiggled awkwardly.

“There’s a place… I need to take you.” Hajime glanced down as the albino inkling shook his head. “You don’t need-”   
“I do. Just so… you know I’m not hiding anything else…”  Nagito couldn’t argue with that, Hajime was certainly a mystery. Izuru even more so.

* * *

  
Hajime and Nagito had went to the underground subway, the albino remembered it fondly. The vending machines that hummed as the jellyfish bustled towards their daily commutes.  “Follow me.” Hajime insisted as Nagito followed him silently. The crowds of jellyfish had diminished and the noises of the metro had ceased to quiet white noise. They entered a tunnel, the darkness coiled around the two as they continued to walk through the tunnel.

“Hajime…? Where are we going?” They had arrived at a dead end, a vending machine humming loudly next to them. Nagito watched as Hajime reached for the wall and  _ pulled at it. _

He had motioned for the inkling to continue following him as he entered the curtain.

“H-Hajime?” Nagito whispered, seeing a set of train tracks on the other side. “...hold my hand.” Hajime murmured as he grasped Nagito’s hand. The albino blinked, his face heating up. It was dark and quiet, the rumbling from subways  _ above them _ shook the area around them. Hajime walked forward with a stride.  “The Central Station should be just ahead.” Hajime murmured as they bypassed some crashed up subways, covered in graffiti and teal coloured ink. Nagito swallowed. “What… happened here?”

“Age.” Hajime answered, glancing towards him.  _ His eyes were red. _

“Kamukura?” Nagito whispered as the boy nodded slowly. There was a light at the end of the tunnel. The albino was eager to get off the tracks, the rumbling of a incoming subway started to frighten him. “K-Kamukura!?”  He tried to move the boy, but he noticed the growing tentacles and the suckers appearing in his tentacles. He grabbed Nagito with the tentacles, the inkling felt mildly uncomfortable. ( _ It’s so… slippery… _ ) He swallowed his drool as the octoling moved towards the light. 

The rumbling had ceased as Nagito blinked a few times to clear his eyes from the darkness.

A dome, a parked train on the other side. Broken glass, the distant rings of a telephone. Open lockers, a vending machine…

“Komaeda, welcome to my testing facility. Kamabo Co.” He placed Nagito on the side of the platform for the boy to rest as Izuru stood behind him, his tentacles swaying freely in the non-existant breeze.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> May as well change the premise of the AU going "if the Deepsea Metro is ever mentioned, it causes chaos." But I bet you didn't see that one coming huh?


	4. The Dark Subway of Secrets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Turns out Izuru was a busy octoling after all.

Nagito looked around in awe. His chest had tightened up from the fear of what Izuru had said.

“ _ Komaeda, welcome to my testing facility. Kamabo Co. _ ”

“What do you… do here?” Nagito asked, finally finding his voice. The octoling hummed. “...I was nothing more than the observer here. I was assigned to the role of founder by the telephone that used to be here.”   
“The telephone that used to be here?” The inkling repeated. Izuru looked at the shattered pieces of glass. “...yes. However, since the fall of the telephone, it had became nothing more than a regular station. The reports of the former escapee, Applicant ten-thousand and eight, came through on my laptop.”

“W-Wait… ten-thousand!?” Nagito proclaimed, standing up towards Izuru. The octoling nodded. “Ten-thousand and seven applicants were furiously blended into a powerful source of ink, said to be able to wipe out the entirety of Inkopolis and all of the inhabitants. I shared my grief of both the inkling and octarian beings tormenting me, betraying me, lying to me… that the telephone had told me of his plan. So I did what I was asked…”

Izuru glanced around. “...I made an uncompletable death trap to both inklings and octarians.” Nagito shivered violently. “Y-You did all that? To… kill all of us?”   
“That was the past… before you came and helped me realise that Hinata and I are unique, and that’s a… good thing. If this was the past, I would have killed you the minute you arrived in Octo Valley.”

Nagito was about to respond, but Izuru motioned over to the parked train. “...you wished to see the Deep Sea Metro I helped create, did you not?”

“So wait, this is… the Deep Sea Metro?”   
“Yes.”  
Nagito was hesitant to say anything, remembering that Chiaki had mentioned it casually in their first conversation. So he walked with Izuru onto the train, the doors closed and off they went.

* * *

  
“ _ Greetings CEO! _ ” A small blue sea cucumber greeted Izuru and Nagito on their seperate train cart. “ _ I see you brought a friend with you today! _ ” The octoling nodded. “ _ So I take it you heard about the failure that was the ‘promised land’? _ ”  
“I heard. But I do not care for it anymore.” Izuru stated as the sea cucumber tipped his tiny conductor hat. “ _ I see! Enjoy the trip! _ ” They watched the cucumber slipped through the sealed door. Izuru took a seat, staring idly out the window.

Nagito shuffled awkwardly, the lights flickered and hummed above him. “Komaeda, take a seat.” Izuru stated, motioning the open seat next to him. The train cart was empty, but it was better to sit with someone he knew.  
The inkling sat awkwardly beside him. “...so who was that?”   
“The train conductor, C.Q Cumber.” Izuru answered plainly as Nagito blinked. “H-Huh? That’s literally his name?”   
“Yes.” Izuru answered as the inkling held down his fit of giggles.

The train had a tune playing in the ambience. Nagito piped up. “The Calamari Inkantation?” He murmured as Izuru nodded. “The tune eases the passengers and recovers test subjects after they completed a test. However, it’s tune is slightly altered so Hinata doesn’t resurface.”

“Why?” Nagito whispered as Izuru shook his head. “Hinata does not know how to read in Octarian, so most of my memories are written and spoken in that language. Ergo, he only knows through feelings in his chest. The emotions that were soon surpressed by my tormentors.”  The two remained silent until Nagito stared out the windows in awe. Neon lights and clay building structures littered the background, the only source of light was a bright beam in the distance.

“So… how did you… find, this metro?”   
“During the epilogue of the war, I was shunned from both Octarian and Inkling society. So I met the telephone during a trek along these long deserted train tracks.” Izuru stated, staring out of the window.  
“...it was a grueling task at first, noting that some of the areas are underwater.”   
“H-Huh!?”   
“However… it took a few years for the whole metro to be reworked and mapped out, with different stations for test subjects to either pass or fail.” Izuru stated. “I soon learned how to clone, how to sanitize… but that’s another tale to tell for another time.”  
“Sanitize…?” Nagito whispered. “The ink from the subjects that were blended contained the samples I needed to create regenerating copies of Octarian soldiers.” Izuru explained, taking off the white button up to reveal… that same armor.   


Nagito was immediately taken aback. “A-Are you…?”   
“No, I will not hurt Hinata’s friends. Yet, I do understand the trauma you faced when fighting me. Nanami… had witnessed the same. I created this armor to be stronger than the vanilla brand of armor the army used against you.”

Izuru put the shirt back on and stared at the seat opposing him. “...the recent and the only succeeding applicant, was Nanami Chiaki.” Nagito stilled in his seat as the train entered another tunnel.  Izuru pulled out something from his shirt pocket. The albino turned to look at it. A pixelated white squid sat firmly in his hand. “...back in the day, Hinata would play a game with locals of his town. Squid Jump, as it was called. That memory… formed this.”

“What is that?” Nagito whispered as Izuru put it back. “A memcake, Chiaki has a full collection of those due to the amount of memories that were robbed from her. Robbed… by Commander Tartar.”  The albino was going to pipe up, but the train had stopped. C.Q came to greet them. “ _ This is your stop sir! _ ” Izuru stood up and motioned Nagito to follow, the albino followed him in silence.

* * *

  
It was an abandoned station. Worn down and cracked walls and tiles, cracked glass dividers and the booths were crushed. The gates were down, except one that was always kept open.  In the foyer laid a complete set up of camera feeds and filing cabinets. Papers strewn across the tiled floor and on the office chair. But oddly enough, next to the desk of monitors was a tape deck.

Izuru took the chair and typed at the computer, all of the keys were in Octarian so Nagito couldn’t read them. “Is this… your office space?”   
“Was. I manage Kamabo through my laptop nowadays.”   
“So that’s what you were doing…” Nagito whispered.   
“...seeing as Nanami completed my challenges, the stations had since been malfunctioning.” Izuru stated as the albino gave him a surprised look. “Malfunctioning?”   
“The enemy count would lower with each run of each station. Girl Power Station was completely closed down due to these malfunctions.”

“Is that why you’re here?”   
“Not really… there has been something Hinata and I have been debating on.” Izuru stated, his long tentacles typing at the keys as he placed his hands on his lap.  
“What is that…?” Nagito asked, Izuru glanced at the screen. “...do you want Hinata and I to be like this?”  
“What do you mean?”   
“Two alternating races with different mindsets?” Izuru answered. The albino was taken aback. “Why are you asking me this?”

Izuru pulled up blueprints… written in Inkling? Nagito read them and he was frozen in shock. “You want to… merge together?”   
“Not precisely, Hinata had since betrayed his own kind during the war and I have been feared for centuries… ergo, he wants to be… his own being. Something new. Something that… won’t be feared.”

Izuru glanced towards him. “Well? He asked for your input on this so-” There was a loud ripping sound as Nagito tore the blueprints apart. “No! I want you and Hajime to be like this! The way you are now doesn’t scare me! I don’t care if you put Chiaki through those tests! She did them and she’s alive!”

“Komaeda-”   
“-I’m not scared of you! I’m not scared of Hajime turning traitor either! You are my friend, he’s my friend too-”   
“- _ Komaeda… _ ”   
“-I’m not going to get you killed Kamukura! I don’t want Hajime to be guilty for the rest of his life either! And I… I…” Nagito paused, seeing Izuru stare at him with crying eyes.  “ _ I… don’t understand… _ ” Izuru whispered, the words of his native language echoed around the room. “ _ I thought you would be… happy about this… _ ” Nagito stood in front of him and hugged him tightly. 

“I’m happy with the way you two are… sure you don’t work well together from time to time. But… I… kinda know how you feel.”   
“ _ Komaeda… _ ”   
“It’s okay now Kamukura…” His tentacles relaxed against the chair as Nagito let him go. “...let’s go home now, mister CEO.” He joked as Izuru tilted his head.

* * *

  
Hajime was granted control once again as they walked through Inkopolis. “So… how was the Deep Sea Metro?” He asked as Nagito sighed. “Breath-taking… well, the sights of the place anyway. Hard to believe it’s underwater.”  
“That’s something I didn’t know! Were you okay with that?” Hajime asked, his concern brimming his tone. Nagito laughed. “We were fine, Kamukura ensured so.”

Hajime nodded as they climbed the stairs to their apartment. “Gh-!” The inkling recoiled against the wall, startling Nagito. “Hajime!?”   
“Argh…” He sighed irritably. “My head…” Hajime rubbed his head as he straightened himself up.

“Are you okay?” Nagito asked, gently approaching Hajime as he nodded his head. “Just… a headache… I’ll sleep it off.”   
“Aha… that’s alright, today must’ve been straining.” Nagito proclaimed as the inkling before him nodded.

* * *

  
Upon arriving at the apartment, the two had some leftover ramen and watched a bit of television before going their seperate ways. Nagito awoke the next morning, got himself lightly toasted toast and waited for Hajime to wake up. He waited, and waited… and waited.

Hours began to stack up, until it was midday. ( _ Hajime…? _ ) Nagito put down his sandwich and went over to the guestroom. “Hajime?” He called quietly, knocking on the door softly. No answer. Panic rode his system. “Hajime?!” He whisper/shouted, knocking more firmly. No answer.  
He slowly opened the door and crept into the room. There wasn’t any music playing, which was odd after a day of having Izuru and Hajime being active in the same day. Added the fact that Hajime was bundled thickly into his blankets.

( _ It wasn’t that cold last night… was it? _ ) He gingerly approached the bed and gently nudged him. “Hajime?” No response, Nagito nudged him again. “It’s noon, wake up…!” This time, he received a groan in response.

The albino stood back as Hajime sat up, yawning tiredly. Something was… off. The short stubs of tentacle were longer… thicker and slightly curled at the end. “Nagito…?” Hajime turned on the lamp beside him.

Nagito stiffened. “H-Hajime…?” The albino squeaked. “What’s wrong Nagito? Is… is there something on my face?”

“H-Hajime… y-you’re an octoling!”   
“What?” Nagito found a mirror and presented it to Hajime. The boy’s eyes widened in horror. His eyes were wider as the eye mask that inklings would have was no longer visible. Three of his front tentacles have grown suckers, his ahoge receiving the same treatment. His squid stubs were longer and almost forming small tentacles.

“W-What…?!” Hajime whispered in horror, seeing the one fang in his mouth, he had immediately covered his mouth as tears started forming in his eyes. Nagito sat next to him and rubbed his back, assuring that he was going to be okay.  Hajime just sobbed quietly into his shoulder. ( _ Perhaps I can ask Kamukura about this… _ ) Nagito thought as he comforted his friend.

* * *

  
Chiaki hadn’t contacted Nagito in a while, this drew the attention of Callie as the octoling had visited Octo Canyon when her Grizzco shifts ended. “What’s the matter? You look so unhappy…” Callie stated, sitting next to the octoling. Chiaki sighed. “...it’s been a while since I’ve seen Nagito and… Hajime.”   
“-Is it because of Kamukura?”

Chiaki winced. Callie gasped. “Ohmygosh! I’m so sorry!”   
“No no… it’s fine…” Chiaki whispered with a sigh. “Kamukura is… someone who still terrifies me. Like I don’t feel safe with him, or Hajime… it’s so hard to believe that Kamukura was Hajime… and Hajime was Kamukura.”

“It seems like Agent 4 has been keeping him in check recently according to Marie.”   
“Huh?”   
“Oh! My cousin has been stalking Agent 4 around Inkopolis, he’s been spending a lot of private time with that Hajime squiddo.” Callie grinned. “It makes me wonder if… no it can’t be…  _ is he gay for Hajime? _ ”

Chiaki turned red. “I-I know that Nagito has been close to Hajime since he got here… but I’m scared that Kamukura would hurt him… he hurt me…-”   
“But he also saved you in that shift! Perhaps the Inkantation changed him…” Chiaki sighed and stood up. 

“You’re… right. Thank you Callie.”   
“Hey! Don’t mention it!” With that, the octoling left Octo Canyon, Callie gave the trapped DJ in the snowglobe a side-eye.

* * *

  
Hajime sweated buckets. “S-So… I’m forever an octoling…” Nagito set a cup of tea down in front of him. “It can’t be so bad… since inkling society is currently allowing octolings to live with us. Haven’t you seen Inkopolis Plaza? Full of octolings!”   
“But… but… would this mean that I’m slowly turning to Kamukura again? I don’t want to lose myself… I don’t want to stop existing…”   
“Hajime.” Nagito put a hand on his shoulder. “I’m not afraid of you Hajime. If Kamukura resurfaces permanently, we’ll figure something out. Plus I…” Nagito gently placed a hand on his tentacle ahoge. ( _ So cute…! _ )

“N-Nagito stop that p-please…” Hajime murmured as the inkling stopped. “Sorry…” He murmured, putting his hand down.  There was a knock on their apartment door, startling Hajime as Nagito stood up. “Who’s there?”

“ _ It’s me… _ ” Hajime stiffened and pulled over his black Skalop hood over his head as Nagito went to answer the door. It was Chiaki. The newly turned octoling tried to remain calm as the inkling invited Chiaki inside.

“Hey Hajime.” Chiaki greeted as the boy waved back at her. “Is there… a reason why you’re here?” Nagito asked as the octoling looked down. “I want to… apologize. I’ve been… so rude to you two. You guys are my friends and I…” She glanced towards Hajime. “...I left you guys, in fear of what Kamukura would do… I’m such a bad friend…”

“Don’t say that!” Hajime shouted, running up to her. “I should be the one to apologize for Kamukura’s actions to you.” He said, lowering his voice. Chiaki blinked. “...why are you wearing your hood up?”

Nagito started sweating. “Also your face is covered…” Hajime winced when Chiaki pushed his hood back, shock laced her face. “Hajime?! You’re…” She grazed her finger towards his tentacles, glancing at his face as the boy turned red. “...an octoling… how did this…?”  
“We don’t know how this happened…” Nagito stated as Hajime nodded, Chiaki removed her hands and gave him a sad look. “Does this mean… that you’re-”   
“No, no!” Hajime quickly exclaimed. “At least… I don’t know…” He quietly proclaimed.

Chiaki could tell that he was frantic, but she didn’t question. “A-Anyway… I wanted to know if you guys want to go to the Shoal to have some private matches?”   
“I’ve never visited the Shoal…” Nagito whispered in awe as Hajime smiled lightly. “Sure.” He stated.

* * *

  
It was a two versus one scenario, yet the trio had fun in their battles. Playing well into the night and continuing to play non-stop. They came back after their match and Chiaki looked at the screen.  “How about one more match? To… end off the evening?” The octoling asked as Hajime sighed. “You said that last time…” Nagito laughed. “I wouldn’t mind another round! This is going to be the last one though, I don’t think Judd and Little Judd can stay awake any longer.” 

Hajime sent the two a grateful smile, feeling warmth stir in him. ( _ Even after everything… we can still mend our bonds. _ ) The map chosen was Camp Triggerfish and it looked beautiful in the night.  The torches were lit, the banners still flew in the winds. Only then did he realise that Chiaki and Nagito were on the oppose team. “ _ Good luck Hajime! Don’t think we’ll go easy on you! _ ” 

The newly turned octoling smiled. “Trust me, I know that.” The music was… hijacked? He glanced around and saw a helicopter in the sky. “HEY! Don’t leave us out of the turf war action!”  It was Pearl and Marina, with Callie and Marie in their idol getup. A song started playing, it was the Splatfest Song… ( _ Ink Me Up? _ ). He shook his head and readied his N-Zap ‘89. “Go! Go! Go!” Pearl shouted excitedly as the Squid Sisters started their performance.

( _ I get it… _ ) Hajime thought, playing through the match as Chiaki and Nagito double teamed him. ( _ We may grow to hate each other, we would some times stomach the guilt of the things we did in the past. Lie and abuse those who genuinely cared about us… _ ) Hajime grinned as Chiaki and Nagito had respawned.

( _ But now that I realise… we both have to learn, we both need to grow… together. _ ) Hajime respawned and shook the remaining ink off of him. ( _ We don’t need to sacrifice ourselves for a better future, we can only move forward naturally. Craft our own future, our own identity. _ )

“Hey? Hajime?”   
( _ So I’ve decided… no more will I be the Hajime Hinata from the Great Turf War… no more will I be Izuru Kamukura, the ultimate turncoat and the CEO of Kamabo Co… I will be, the best me we can be. _ ) One minute left on the clock as Hajime reopened his eyes. A sparking green and red stared out on the field.

The tips of his tentacles turned to an ombre black/yellow (team colour) while the tips of his fingers turned a light tan colour. “I won’t back down! Not now, not ever!” Hajime shouted as he charged onto the field.

( _ That’s what you both have taught me… Chiaki, Nagito… the two individuals that saved Inkopolis twice… my two friends who have been with me since… well… a few weeks or months ago. I won’t go back to the past, I won’t inflict harm on anyone anymore… I will be myself… _ )

“Time Up!”

* * *

  
The yellow turned back to the greenish-brown he was known for as he turned to Nagito and Chiaki, their stares of shock mirrored each other perfectly. “...I’ve decided. I’m going to be my own person. No longer hiding behind a mask of ignorance, a mask of deceit.” His dichromatic eyes watering.

“I will be, Hajime Hinata… friend of Chiaki Nanami and Nagito Komaeda.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that was the end of the third part, the ending reads like the total finale but my friends wanted more and now they wanted me to post it.  
I hope you enjoyed the third part of my AU! I might post up the fourth and fifth but it doesn't really need it, I did those because of request. Who knows, if any of you all are interested in the series, I might put those into a spoof series or something but they technically are a part of the canon.  
Comments are appreciated!


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